


We Hate Tallbirds

by Snowish



Series: A Web of Stuff [2]
Category: Don't Starve (Video Game)
Genre: Animal Death, Mild Gore, a catcoon gets bludgeoned and a robot gets his arm severed nothing too extreme
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-30
Updated: 2018-06-30
Packaged: 2019-05-31 05:34:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15112853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Snowish/pseuds/Snowish
Summary: Directly after Look What Came Crawling Up, Webber is carefully adjusting to life at the camp. But WX-78 brings up something that makes him curious, and it all goes downhill from there...





	1. Tallbird?

“We saw a strange nest while exploring today.”  Webber mumbled across the fire as he picked at his food. He was joined by three others tonight--Miss Wickerbottom, WX-78, and a girl he had been introduced to earlier that morning, Wendy.

He found it a little comforting that there was another kid hanging around, even if she wasn’t quite like him. Apparently she had a sister who could come back as a ghost, but he hadn’t had the chance to see it in action, given he hadn’t explored with her that day. Instead, WX-78 had taken him along, as he had promised he would help Webber get used to things around here.

“NEST CONFIRMED TO BE A TALLBIRD’S.” WX-78 said from his spot. Webber wasn’t sure why a robot needed food, but he didn’t question it as WX ate. “RELATIVELY CLOSE TO CAMP. WILL HAVE TO ERADICATE IT SOON.”

“Tallbird?” Webber asked. WX hadn’t mentioned that when Webber pointed it out on their trip. He simply advised the child to stay away from it.

“Oh, they’re nefarious things.” Wickerbottom scoffed. “They attack on sight, so having one near the camp is no good. “Are you going to deal with it, WX, or should somebody else?”

“I DO NOT REQUIRE ANY ASSISTANCE.” WX-78 replied in as sharp a tone a robot could manage. “I WILL SLAY THE BIRD TOMORROW AND GET RID OF THE NEST.”

“It’s odd how we are merely guests in this world, yet we already have the pride to control it in ways such as this.” Wendy spoke, in her odd, quiet voice.

“It’s either that or be overtaken by the wilderness.” Wickerbottom replied, not too put off by Wendy’s macabre tone. Webber wasn’t sure what to make of it himself, honestly. Perhaps he just needed to get to know Wendy, but her point of view set him on edge.

“If WX-78 is going to take care of the Tallbird tomorrow, does that mean Webber can join me and Abigail?” Wendy then asked, smiling a little. In the flickering light of the fire, Webber couldn’t help but think her expression was rather haunting.

“Huh? But I wanna help with the Tallbird…” Webber mumbled, his mouth half-full of food. He looked expectantly at WX, wondering if the robot would allow it.

 

“YOU ARE NOT TRAINED IN PROPER COMBAT.” WX-78 said, not even bothering to look back at Webber. “YOU WILL BE NOTHING BUT A LIABILITY, RESULTING IN A WASTE OF TIME AND RESOURCES FOR YOUR REVIVAL.”

“Oh…”

Wickerbottom gave the robot a harsh look, but didn’t say anything to oppose him. Apparently she agreed.

“Besides, don’t lots of birds eat spiders?” Wendy asked into the open air.

Upon hearing this, Webber went still. He wasn’t aware of that. Birds ate spiders? Then, would that mean the Tallbird would see him as a potential snack?

“THE SPIDER CHILD WILL REMAIN HERE OR ASSIST SOMEONE ELSE IN THEIR DUTIES TOMORROW.” WX-78 said, ignoring Webber’s discomfort.

“But--” Webber began, but was cut off by Wickerbottom.

“WX has a point, dear. You’re very young and shouldn’t be jumping into battle. It’s best you stick to gathering resources.” She sighed, giving the child a gentle pat on his shoulder.

“Okay…” He mumbled, turning back to his food. He didn’t want to feel any more like a burden on the camp, being so new and all, but if they said so…

“In any case, it’s time for you children to get some sleep.” Wickerbottom advised. Even if they were in a hellish landscape with little chance of escaping, children were still children. Rest was important. “Off you go, now.”

“Goodnight.” Wendy hummed, standing up and starting to skip away. “I can’t wait for you to meet Abigail tomorrow, Webber…”

Webber couldn’t help but give a bit of a shudder before getting up himself, heading towards WX-78’s tent for the night.

* * *

 

He had expected to have another quiet night of rest, as he had the first time, but apparently fate was not too forgiving. 

As soon as he closed his eyes, he was wracked with panic, terrible visions of dark-eyed crows leering down at him, and the feeling that he needed to run. If he didn’t run, he would die. He needed to keep going.

_ “Don’t lots of birds eat spiders?” _ Echoed Wendy’s voice in his head, only urging him to run even faster.

Where was he even going? The dream--no, nightmare--had no landscape. He was just running continuously in nothingness. How could he escape like this?

_ Run, _ **_run,_ ** **_run._ **

The same raspy voice he always heard in his head pierced through, just as panicked as he was. It wanted out. It wanted to get away from the birds, even though they didn’t exist.

So when Webber awoke, he flailed a bit, panting heavily and still desperate to run. Only the fabric of the bed roll stopped him from tumbling out of the tent in a panic, and it allowed him to get his bearings, looking around slowly as he caught his breath.

No birds here. Safe. Everything’s fine…

So the spider side of him really hated birds, huh? He frowned upon realizing this. Maybe it was for the better that he didn’t go with WX, then.

 

The sun had just started peeking up over the horizon, and Webber decided there wasn’t any point in sleeping more than he had to. Carefully folding up his bed roll and setting it aside, he grabbed the backpack he had made the previous day and stumbled out of the tent, supposing he would find Wendy and get ready for whatever they were to do today.

The girl was waiting for him by the fire, and she smiled her strange small smile when she caught sight of him. She also had a backpack on her back, but gripped in one of her hands was a strange red flower--What was that for, Webber wondered.

“I get to explore on my own because Abigail protects me.” Wendy said without any prompt from Webber. “So you should be fine with the both of us today.”

Once they had checked in with Miss Wickerbottom that they were leaving, Wendy took Webber out the west exit of the camp, rather than the east like WX had led him through the previous day.

 

“So, um, is your sister really a ghost?” He asked not even a few yards out of the base. He still didn’t understand how that was possible, but he had been revived and merged with a spider, so he wasn’t too skeptical about things at this point.

“Yes. But our bond is so strong, I can call on her in times of need. Would you like to see how?” Wendy asked, glancing back at him as she walked.

“S-Sure,” He managed, immediately curious. Did it have something to do with that flower she was still holding?

“Very well. I believe there is a catcoon hollow nearby. We will make use of its furry little resident.”

Without much more explanation than that, Wendy began searching the area for the hollow she had mentioned. It didn’t take her very long to locate it, luckily, and she promptly set the flower she was holding down in the ground beside it. Webber blinked in surprise as it floated a couple inches off the ground, petals splayed wide.

“Now we just need a tribute.” Wendy said, as if it were obvious, but Webber was still very much in the dark. Tribute? What kind of tribute do you give a floating flower?

Webber didn’t have to dwell on that for too long, however, as something began to stir within the den, making Wendy draw something out of her backpack and stand at the ready. Webber assumed it was some sort of weapon, but it didn’t look like anything he was familiar with. Some sort of purple club with spikes on it...

A moment later, a furry little head poked its way out of the hollow, looking around with big white eyes. Webber recognized that--it was a raccoon! But why had it been called a catcoon by Wendy?

This question was answered rather quickly, as the creature shambled the rest of the way out of its den and proceeded to stretch, the method of which immediately made him think of a cat. So this thing was part cat, part raccoon?

Unfortunately, Webber didn’t get the chance to find out for sure. Almost faster than he could blink, Wendy lashed out with her weapon, striking the catcoon in the head and making it give an awful yowl.

“Wendy! Wh-what are you doing?!” Webber asked, jumping back a couple feet. She had just attacked the thing out of nowhere! It was so adorable, why did she have to attack it?

But Wendy did not respond. She struck the creature again, providing a sickening splat sound as a bit of red entered Webber’s vision. He couldn’t help but feel sick, and turned away, covering his mouth in case he was.

“My apologies, but I require the blood of the freshly slain. Besides, the bodies do not stick around for very long. Look.” Wendy said in her apparent attempt at a reassuring tone.

Webber took a shaky breath before fixing his eyes back to where the catcoon’s body has been, only to watch the mess quickly turn to dust, catching on the wind and floating far away. All that remained were a few scraps of meat and the creature’s tail.

“Y-yeah, but could you have at least warned me--Huh?” Webber began, turning back to Wendy, but instead stared in confusion as she held her weapon over the floating flower. A few drops of blood dripped from the point of one of the spikes, landing neatly on the flower’s petals before Wendy put the weapon away.

In response to the blood, the flower snapped shut, glowing a bright red. It began to tremble, and Wendy started clapping her hands with as much excitement as she could muster (and with her macabre demeanor, that wasn’t a lot). 

Webber was just about to ask how long it would take, when--

 

**_FWOOSH._ **

 

The flower burst open again, releasing a wave of energy and a flash of white light, making Webber hiss and cover his face. It took him a minute to recover from the flash, blinking all eight of his eyes furiously to clear them, but when he was able to focus again, he went still.

“This is my sister, Abigail.” Wendy said, gesturing to the form now in front of them. She paused for a moment to pick up the flower, and then continued to speak.

“Abigail, this is Webber. He’s the boy that joined us the other night.”

The figure before them, a pale spectral mass that resembled a hanging piece of cloth with two round eyes, stared at Webber. Not sure what to say, Webber stared back, taking note that like Wendy, Abigail had a flower in her hair--though hers was red as opposed to yellow.

“I’m afraid Abigail isn’t much of a talker,” Wendy said almost apologetically. “But she is devoted to keeping me safe. You are a friend, so she will protect you as well. Now we can gather supplies without worrying about hostile creatures.”

“Th-that’s good. Hello, Abigail.” Webber managed with a bit of a nervous wave to the ghost. He wasn’t sure if he had believed in ghosts before being drawn into this place, but this encounter removed all skepticism from his mind.

Abigail didn’t respond, of course, but began to float after the pair as they worked their way towards a large group of berry bushes.

 

“So you were dead for a long time, huh?” Wendy asked, trying to make small talk as they picked the bushes. “Do you remember what it was like?”

“Um… Not really…” Webber admitted. “I don’t remember a lot, actually. I don’t remember what things were like before I died… The earliest I can recall is getting thrown in here by Maxwell and then dying. Then it’s just a big blank.”

“That’s reasonable.” Wendy said with a nod. “Some of the others’ memories are a bit funny as well. It’s likely the result of coming into this world. I wouldn’t fret about it too much.”

Webber frowned, not really liking how easily she brushed that aside. What if he wanted to fret about it? He wanted to remember what his life was like--he wanted to remember his real name!

He bit his lip as he stood up to move on to the next bush, barely noticing when Wendy gave out a small gasp. He only looked up from what he was doing when Wendy called his name.

“Webber, no!”

 

He froze, looking to her to give a quizzical expression, wondering what her concern was. In response, she pointed at the ground around him, which was coated in a fine white substance.

“Spider webbing.” She explained quietly. “If you step on it, the spiders will come out of their den and attack you. There must be one nearby.”

“S-spiders?” Webber squeaked, forgetting he himself was part spider. He glanced behind him, and sure enough there was a large mound of white silk, sitting in the middle of a large plot of grass that was coated in the same substance.

“I don’t think they sensed you.” Wendy said under her breath. “Move very slowly… And walk towards me.”

Following her instructions, Webber carefully rose to his feet and made gentle steps in her direction. Though he expected the webbing to cling to his claws and make it difficult to escape, the silk let him move freely, stepping back on regular turf with no trouble. 

“It’s surprisingly close to camp.” Wendy mumbled as she opened up her pack to look for something. “We’ll have to get rid of it before it gets any bigger, or it will just cause problems.”

This time her weapon of choice was a reed tube and a small pointed projectile that she slipped inside of it. Was it some sort of blow dart? 

 

“When I strike, they will all come crawling out,” She explained. “Abigail will handle the nest, but we will need to take care of whatever spiders lie inside. Can you do that?”

Without waiting for his response, she plopped the spiked weapon she had used earlier into his hands, making him fumble from the unexpected weight. She then turned to the next, bringing the reed to her lips, and fired the dart, landing a direct hit into the webbing of the nest.

Several things happened in the span of a few seconds. Abigail charged for the nest, looking furious. Two black forms emerged from the webbing, hissing angrily as they clawed their way towards the children. Wendy swapped her blow dart for a spear and began to charge, not waiting for Webber to follow.

And Webber… Webber remained frozen in place. Hearing the hissing of the spiders made two voices scream in his mind, both of which fought desperately for victory over the other.

 

_ N-No! Not again, I don’t want to die again--! _

**_BRETHREN. JOIN THEM._ **

_ They’re not my brethren, they’re monsters, they killed-- _

**_JOIN THEM. HUNT. KILL. EAT._ **

_ I DON’T WANNA! _

 

He remained where he was, frozen in place, eyes wide and distant. He barely heard the fight that was going on around him. He didn’t know how well Wendy was faring, or how Abigail was doing with the nest. 

It was only some point later that he realized he had spaced out. He felt a nudge to his shoulder, and a concerned voice starting to fill his ears.

“Webber? Are you alright?”

He blinked, finally letting the world come back into focus. Wendy stood in front of him, Abigail floating a few inches behind her. The nest was destroyed, reduced to a pile of silk, and the remains of the spiders were already dissipating into the air, leaving behind pieces of dark purple meat.

“We… We couldn’t…” He managed, his voice raspy once again. He tried to take a deep breath, but swayed on his feet, making Wendy catch him and carefully sit him down.

“It’s alright if you couldn’t fight.” Wendy said. “I suppose it’s probably a little too soon after what happened. But I took care of the spiders, and Abigail handled the nest. Everything’s fine now.”

“S-Sorry…” Webber mumbled when he was able to recover himself a bit. “I…”

“Can you walk? Do you want to go back to the camp?”

“No, I think I can… Keep going.” He insisted, managing to pull himself back up to his feet, Wendy hovering over him just a little to make sure he was alright. 

“Okay. We’ll keep going, then.” Wendy said, starting to walk onwards. She then paused, glancing back at the ruined nest. “Oh, and do you think you can pick up that silk? It’ll be useful for lots of different things.”

Webber nodded, moving to the remains of the nest and beginning to pick up clumps of the substance, adding them to his pack. He paused for a moment when he caught sight of the purple meat, then looked to Wendy.

 

“What about the meat? Are we not going to take that?”

“It’s monster meat.” Wendy explained. “We can’t eat it. It makes us sick. So it’s better if we just leave it to rot for now.” With that, she continued to walk, Abigail trailing silently behind.

“Oh.” Was all Webber said in response. He looked back down at the meat, not understanding why it would be so bad. It was purple, sure… Maybe a little hairy… But it actually smelled good.

Wait. Did he actually just think that?  _ It smelled good? _

**_HUNGRY…_ **

Come to think of it, he actually hadn’t had any breakfast before they set out… He didn’t want to put a dent in what they had already gathered, either…

Surely just one bite couldn’t hurt?

Sneaking a quick look back at Wendy, who was already busying herself with another berry bush, Webber picked up one of the pieces of meat. It was softer than he expected, but that didn’t really deter him. He was already eating strange food off the ground, after all.

_ Gulp. _

Well, that wasn’t… Too bad, actually. It at least stopped the voice in his head begging for food. And really, it just tasted like regular meat--though, obviously, a bit on the raw side. He certainly didn’t feel sick… At least not immediately. Perhaps he would wait to see if anything happened before having more.

He then picked up the other piece, intending on putting it in his pack, when--

He glanced up upon hearing a faint skittering sound, only to find another spider right in front of him. If he didn’t know any better, he could have sworn the thing looked… Lost? Like it expected something to be here, but didn’t find it. Was it a spider from the nest they had just destroyed?

The spider stared at Webber with eight round eyes, looking like it was expecting something. It took Webber a moment to realize it was actually staring at the meat in his hand. Was it hungry, too? 

Perhaps it wouldn’t hurt to help the little thing… It didn’t seem hostile, after all.

“Here you go, little guy…” He said, holding the meat out for the spider to take.

The creature blinked, surprised, before realizing it was being offered the meat, at which point it snapped it up from his hand, chewing loudly. It seemed rather satisfied once it had finished, and beamed up at Webber. 

Wait, could spiders beam? He hadn’t expected the creatures to be very expressive, but he got the distinct feeling the spider was grateful towards him.

 

**_FRIEND._ **

 

There was that voice in his head again. He had grown accustomed to the idea that it was the spider part of him, but it didn’t make its interjections any more easy on his mind.

“Do you wanna come with us?” He asked, voice once again becoming raspy. “I don’t know if Wendy would like it.”

As if to answer him, the spider moved closer, brushing up against his leg in a similar way to a cat. Heh, he liked it when cats did that… at least, he remembered he did. He couldn’t recall the last time a cat had done that to him.

“Webber, what’s taking so long? Are you--Webber!”

Webber looked up to see Wendy had walked back over, Abigail right behind as always. She had brought out her blow dart again, and looked read to strike the spider, which hissed in response.

“Wait!” Webber insisted, moving so he was between the spider and Wendy. “I think it’s friendly!”

“A friendly spider?” She asked, slowly lowering her weapon, but giving the arachnid a wary look. “I mean, ignoring you, I don’t think that’s possible.”

“But it likes us.” Webber hissed dejectedly. “We gave it the meat, and now it wants to come along.”

Wendy pursed her lips, still gripping the weapon as if debating whether to listen to him or not. Webber was certainly a strange boy… Then again, everyone in camp had their own oddities. She was certainly one to talk, after all.

“But it’s still a spider. Are you sure you can control that thing?”

“We… I think so. When we speak like this, it listens.” He answered, letting the raspiness come back. “It understands us, so… So maybe it’ll follow our orders.”

Wendy stared between the spider and Webber, silently going over things in her head. She then gave a glance to Abigail, as if the ghost could weigh in on the matter, before sighing a bit.

“I suppose it’ll be alright. It might help with hostile creatures, anyhow. But if that thing decides to--”

“I’ll take care of it.” Webber interrupted, nodding a bit. It was his responsibility, anyway. Like a pet. A pet that could very easily kill you if you gave it the chance.

“Very well. Let’s keep going, then.” Wendy said, without another glance towards the spider as she turned around. 

 

Webber followed behind, the spider trailing after him at a reasonable pace. Strangely, with this new friend in tow, he felt a bit more confident. Perhaps he could get the spider to fight for him, and he wouldn’t have to worry about freezing up again.

Wait…

That actually gave him an idea.


	2. Tallbird!!

Once the late afternoon hit, Wendy and Webber decided it was time to head back to the camp. With their packs full of various supplies, they made small talk as they walked, feeling good in their success today.

However, when they reached the edge of the camp, Wendy stopped, holding a hand in front of Webber so he would do the same.

“I don’t think you should let that thing in the camp.” She mumbled, gesturing to the spider. “Nobody else knows what you can do yet, and bringing a spider along isn’t really the best way to introduce them to it.”

“Huh? But Skitters has been really nice so far…” He replied, looking a bit downtrodden.

“You named it? Well, I suppose it’s not as bad as spider names go. But in any case, tell it to wait outside. Then we can tell Wickerbottom what happened, and  _ maybe _ she’ll let you bring it in.”

Webber sighed, but realized she had a point. He turned to Skitters and hissed a command for it to wait, to which the spider happily complied. It sat down in place and watched as Webber and Wendy entered the camp.

 

“There you are,” Wickerbottom said with a gentle smile as she caught sight of the children. “Did everything go alright?”

“Yes.” Wendy said simply, taking a seat by the fire. “We encountered a spider den, but we took care of it rather quickly.”

“I made a friend!” Webber cried, a little too excited to sit down just yet. He almost didn’t notice the strange look Wickerbottom gave him.

“Apparently he can communicate with spiders,” Wendy began. “And upon providing them with monster meat, they will follow his instructions. One is still following us, but we had it wait outside the camp.”

“Well, that’s good. I’m afraid it will have to stay there, then. But so long as it remains loyal to you, Webber, I don’t see why it can’t go along with you during exploration.” Wickerbottom responded.

Webber frowned at bit upon hearing the spider couldn’t come in, but it only lasted for a moment. He could take them along with him? That was great!

Webber took Wendy’s pack, intending to bring out what they had found and store it properly, when two more figures arrived at the fire pit. He recognized the metallic footsteps of WX-78, but the tall, bushy-bearded man was somebody he had not been introduced to yet.

 

“WX, are you alright?” Wickerbottom asked, covering her mouth a bit. “You look pretty beat up. Surely the Tallbird didn’t give you that much trouble?”

Webber glanced at the robot, and could see by the light of the fire that his chassis was covered in small dents and scrapes.

“NEGATORY.” The robot responded. “I DID NOT HAVE THE CHANCE TO ENGAGE THE TALLBIRD IN COMBAT. THE LUMBERJACK WAS CARELESS ENOUGH TO INVOKE A TREEGUARD’S IRE, SO I HAD TO ASSIST.”

“It was just a small one!” The bearded man insisted. “Don’t see why you’re all bent out of shape about it! We took care of it in the end.”

“I AM BENT OUT OF SHAPE BECAUSE THE CREATURE WAS ABLE TO STRIKE ME HARD ENOUGH TO WARP MY FRAME.” 

“That’s not what I meant, you--”

“That’s enough, you two.” Wickerbottom interjected. “Treeguards are an inevitability, WX, there is no need to blame Woodie for this. Just focus on getting yourself patched up. If you think you won’t be able to, I’m sure somebody else can handle the--”

“NEGATIVE.” WX blared, interrupting the woman. “I AM PERFECTLY CAPABLE OF HANDLING IT. I SIMPLY NEED SOME TIME TO REPAIR MYSELF. THE CREATURE WILL BE SLAIN TOMORROW.”

 

Webber continued to slowly put away the supplies, listening in on the conversation. So the bearded man was the ‘Woodie’ individual he had heard of when he first arrived, huh? Poor WX, though.

“Well, if you say so…” Wickerbottom tutted. “Did you manage to get the living longs from the Treeguard, at least?”

“Yeah, I got ‘em.” Woodie said with a nod. “Bunch of monster meat, too, though. Whaddya want me to do with that?”

“Put it in the--” 

“You can give it to Webber.” Wendy spoke up, making the adults pause.

“Right… The whole befriending spiders thing…” Wickerbottom said after a moment, adjusting her glasses. “I suppose that provides some use for it. Very well--Webber?”

Webber hurried over to Woodie, who was bringing the meat out of his pack and giving the spider child a very puzzled look. The lumberjack decided not to question it, however, as he handed the stuff to Webber with a shrug and then turned to go about his own business.

 

“I WILL RETIRE TO MY TENT NOW TO MAKE THE NECESSARY REPAIRS.” WX-78 announced, heading off and leaving the other three (four, if you counted Abigail, despite her being silent the whole time) by the fire pit.

Webber was actually glad to receive more meat. Not only could he give more to Skitters, but he could potentially use it to befriend more spiders! Then he could maybe help WX with that Tallbird!

So, doing his best to contain his excitement, Webber rushed to finish putting everything else away, leaving only the meat in his pack. He ate a rushed dinner and bid goodnight to Wendy and Wickerbottom, hurrying over to WX’s tent.

 

When he arrived, he could hear several loud clangs, like somebody was hitting two pieces of metal together--and that was kind of what was happening.

WX-78 sat on the ground, an assortment of tools around him as he worked on the damage caused to him by the Treeguard. He was focusing on hammering out some dents on his shoulder when Webber came in, prompting him to pause.

“IF YOU CAME TO GET SOME SLEEP, I WOULD ADVISE YOU WAIT.” He said. “I BELIEVE IT IS TOO NOISY FOR ADEQUATE REST.”

“Actually, I wanted to talk to you.” Webber said with a shake of his head. “If you want to, that is.”

“I AM CAPABLE OF COMMUNICATION AND REPAIR AT THE SAME TIME. YOU MAY PROCEED.” WX answered, turning back to his work.

Webber walked a little further into the tent, taking a seat where he usually place his bed roll. He took a moment to think of how to phrase things, then spoke up again.

“While Wendy and I were exploring, we found out I can tame spiders.” He said. “And I can use them to fight for me.”

There was a slight pause in the robot’s work, almost as if he was going to stop to say something, but decided against it.

“If you think you’re still a little too banged up to take on the Tallbird, I think I can help--”

“NEGATIVE.” The robot’s response, harsh and blaring as it had been by the fire pit, interrupted Webber. WX’s face remained still, as inflexible as it had ever been, but Webber could feel an intense irritation behind those dark eyes, making him shrink back a little.

“I WILL NOT LET THE LIKES OF A CHILD ASSUME WHETHER I AM CAPABLE OF FULFILLING MY DUTIES OR NOT. I DO NOT NEED HELP.”

“But what if something happens while you fight it?”

“IT WILL NOT COME TO THAT. I AM SUPERIOR TO THE LONG-LEGGED AVIANS.”

“But Wex--WX-78--” Webber correct himself as the robot gave him another harsh look. “I still wanna help.”

“I WILL DO YOU THE FAVOR OF NOT REPORTING THIS ATTEMPTED INTERFERENCE TO ANYONE ELSE.” WX-78, moving from his shoulder to his leg. “BUT ONLY ON THE CONDITION THAT YOU DO NOT TRY ANYTHING TOMORROW.”

Webber opened his mouth to protest, but no sound came out, forcing him to slowly close it and then nod his head slowly.

“THEN IT IS AGREED. DO NOT SPEAK OF IT AGAIN.”

* * *

 

WX-78 finished his work relatively fast, leaving Webber once again in order to let the child fall asleep, but Webber found it difficult to rest that night.

He thought that WX would allow him to help, now that he had an alternative to fighting himself. What was the robot’s deal?

_ Maybe he just prefers to work alone on these kinds of things _ , he thought, sighing as he rolled over on his bed roll.

But why is he allowed to do that? He could get hurt! Reduced to nothing but scrap metal! Surely  _ somebody _ would be worried about that.

He puffed his cheeks out, now glaring up at the tent’s ceiling. This wasn’t the only thing that bothered, him, honestly. He was also annoyed that he couldn’t bring his spider friends inside the camp. They would listen to him! They would protect them! Why didn’t people trust him?

Was it because he had just joined them? Because he was just a kid? That was dumb. He may not know a lot about himself, but he was quickly gaining his bearings in this place. He wasn’t some weak little kid. They even trusted  _ Wendy _ more than they trusted him, and that wasn’t fair!

So he didn’t care what other people thought, he was going to help WX! He would just do it in a way they wouldn’t know.

And so, before focusing on sleep, Webber began to think of a plan that he would put into action the following morning. If all went well, maybe WX would realize not only that he could accept help from time to time, but Webber wasn’t as helpless as they thought he was.

* * *

 

The plan was started the moment he woke up. He had a quick breakfast, then gathered his pack, making sure the monster meat was still inside, telling Wickerbottom he was going to check on Skitters.

Luckily enough, Skitters had waited for him the entire night, chittering happily upon seeing the return of the kid. Webber gave the spider a friendly pet and another piece of meat before glancing back into the camp.

Everyone was either already out or distracted with preparing themselves, so it was the perfect opportunity to bolt. Gesturing for Skitters to follow, Webber hurried off away from the camp.

 

It took him a little while to find another nest, but when he did, he was happy to see a fair amount of spiders were still milling about. Some looked like they were carrying back food, and others seemed to be on the lookout for something, but when they caught sight of the meat in Webber’s hand, their attention immediately shifted.

One helping of meat later, Webber now had a following of at least seven spiders, a couple of which were yellow with black stripes, indicating they were much stronger than normal.

“Alright guys,” Webber urged, puffing out his chest. “Let’s go!”

The group then made their way east, where the nest WX was taking care of would be. It didn’t take long for them to reach it, but Webber hesitated near a clump of grass as they approached, not seeing the robot anywhere. Had they somehow arrived before him?

Wait, no--There he was! The robot appeared from behind a rock, glancing around warily before heading over to the nest. He began to pull it apart, sending twigs and grass raining everywhere. Looking at the size of the nest, Webber figured it would take a while. Perhaps they could go help--

But some movement at the corner of his vision made him pause. A figure with a single eye, large beak, and towering legs was making its way towards the robot, looking very angry. Webber had no doubt in his mind that that was the Tallbird.

 

He was about to command his spiderfriends when he stopped, his voice dying in his throat. The spiders could sense his fear, all of them uttering hisses to show their own apprehension.

**_Birds… Eat… Spiders…_ **

The voice in his head was more of a whisper than it usually was, but it still made him groan and shake his head to try and clear his thoughts. He didn’t need this distraction, not now. He needed to stop that bird before it hurt WX!

Taking a deep breath, Webber stepped out. Then, his courage overwhelming him, he yelled, pointing forward and urging his spiders to join him. Spurred on by their leader, the spiders hissed a response, following him eagerly into battle.

They reached the Tallbird before it even came close to WX, the spiders swarming around its feet and proceeding to bite and claw at its ankles. 

The Tallbird let out a mighty screech before glaring down at the pests, eye flashing red. Webber only had a split second to move out of the way before the bird came down, pecking furiously at the ground where the child had been moments before.

 

Oh dear. This was more dangerous than he thought it would be. And the bird was coming down to peck at him again, oh no!

He rolled out of the way once more, but this time the Tallbird did not miss hitting anything. One of Webber’s spiders, still trying to strike the bird’s legs, was immediately skewered, sending bits of the arachnid’s remains everywhere as the bird lifted up again and swung its beak around.

That was one spiderfriend down, six to go. Webber definitely didn’t want to be on the receiving end of one of those pecks, so--What could he do?

That’s when he spotted an arrangement of rocks not too far away. It would be perfect shelter for him! He just had to get there.

Darting away from the battle, Webber made a beeline for the rocks, desperate to get away. He could hear the Tallbird’s stomps behind him, so he picked up the pace.

When he had arrived at the rocks, he ducked into the opening, scrambling far away from it so the bird couldn’t reach in and grab him. It wasn’t very long after that the opening was covered up, leaving him in near darkness. 

When he looked back to the entrance, his skin crawled. The Tallbird’s large eye was pressed up against the entrance, staring straight at him, and a single talon was trying to pry some stone loose in order to get at him.

**_TRAPPED. TRAPPED, AND NO WAY OUT. DEATH IS COMING._ **

 

No, not now, he didn’t need this headache. He didn’t need to panic!

But he already was. He was trapped. He felt like he couldn’t get enough air. He felt like he was buried underneath the soil all over again.

All he could do was curl up into a ball and hold his head, doing his best to slow his breathing so he wouldn’t hyperventilate. This was a terrible idea, why did he go through with it?

He didn’t dare look up, knowing that he would just be met with that same looming eye again. He didn’t want to face it. He just wanted the bird to give up and go away.

 

The minutes ticked by, and he worried that he would be stuck in there. Wouldn’t WX find him, though? The robot said he would take care of the Tallbird, after all. But WX was busy with the nest, and it didn’t look like he had noticed the scuffle…

Then, at some point, light filled the small cavern. The Tallbird had gone. But he could still hear squawking and hisses outside. Had his spiderfriends distracted the bird? He was too scared to check.

It was only a few minutes later that something happened that made him look up. A new voice called from the entrance.

“COME OUT.”

That was WX’s voice… So he knew Webber was here after all…

“COME OUT OF THERE, WEBBER.”

Webber bit his lip, scared of the robot’s harsh tone, but eventually made his was to the entrance, carefully clambering out and glancing around as his eyes adjusted to the light again.

The area was littered with bits of purple meat, silk, and strange pink organs. Dust swirled around them, clearly the rest of the spiders’ bodies floating off on the wind. A glance to the side revealed the same fate of the Tallbird, though a spear was thrust into its eyes before falling to the ground as the corpse disintegrated.

When Webber finally turned to look at WX, he gasped. 

The robot looked much worse than he had after coming back from the Treeguard. More obvious dents covered his body, one right on the top of his head, and--

“Your arm…” Webber mumbled, pointing at the empty right shoulder socket on WX’s torso. All that remained were a few frayed wires. 

“THE TALLBIRD RIPPED IT OUT AS WE WERE FIGHTING. BECAUSE I CHARGED IN TO ASSIST YOU RATHER THAN COME UP WITH A REASONABLE PLAN.” WX responded.

Webber flinched back a little, realizing the robot’s tone was much harsher than it had ever been. WX’s face may not have been able to express it very well, but his voice made it entirely clear he was absolutely furious.

 

“YOU WERE TOLD NOT TO INTERFERE. YOU DID SO ANYWAY. AS A RESULT, YOU ALMOST GOT KILLED AND I HAVE TO REPAIR MY ARM. WHY DID YOU NOT LISTEN, WEBBER.”

“I thought… I thought I could still help. I don’t want to be babied just because I’m new around here.”

WX remained silent, which made Webber tremble a bit. What could the robot be thinking?

“WE ARE HEADING BACK TO THE CAMP, WHERE I WILL REPORT THIS MISBEHAVIOR TO THE LIBRARIAN.” He finally said, turning and gesturing for Webber to follow.

The young boy eventually trailed after WX, but at a much slower pace, clutching his arms all the while. He thought the plan had been good when he came up with it last night… But actually going through with it was another story.

 

The pair made their way back to the camp in silence, WX not even bothering to check and see if Webber was keeping up. It was still the early afternoon, meaning many people were still out, but Wickerbottom was there, as she always was.

“Webber, there you are!” She exclaimed, standing up from making something. “Wendy spent ages waiting for you, and we had no idea where you--WX, did you get beat up again?”

“I--” Webber began, but was interrupted by WX-78.

“THE CHILD ATTEMPTED TO HELP ME DEFEAT THE TALLBIRD, WITHOUT MY KNOWLEDGE OR CONSENT. HE HAD RECRUITED A GROUP OF SPIDERS, BUT THEY WERE EASILY TAKEN OUT, AND HE WAS FORCED TO HIDE. I TOOK DOWN THE TALLBIRD, BUT NOT BEFORE SUSTAINING… MAJOR DAMAGE.”

At this, Wickerbottom gave Webber a hard look, making him want to just shrink down into nothing. What was her response going to be?

“You were told not to do this, Webber.” Wickerbottom finally spoke, her tone quiet and grave. “You went against our instructions, risked your own safety, and got a fellow survivor hurt in the process. I don’t know how to express how disappointed I am in you.”

Webber’s many eyes began to tear up. She was right. Why didn’t he just listen? Then things would have been okay. 

“I’m--I’m sorry, I--” He started, sniffling a bit.

“Sorry doesn’t fix WX’s arm, sonny.” Wickerbottom said. “I’m afraid as punishment, you will not be allowed to leave the camp until I say so.”

Webber nodded a but before hanging his head, letting all his tears flow, creating a huge mess on his face. 

“Now, go wait in WX’s tent. I will call you when it’s time to eat.” She finished, folding her arms.

 

The child didn’t have anything else to say, so he began to slink off towards the tent. When he arrived, he sat himself on his bedroll, pulling his knees to his chest and finally letting himself sob a bit.

He had really messed up. Why didn’t he listen to them? Why didn’t he listen to the spidery voice in his head? No, he just had to prove something, didn’t he?

He cried for what seemed like several minutes before hearing WX’s footsteps approach, quickly rubbing his face so the worst of the mess was smeared away. When WX entered, he looked up, wondering what the robot wanted now.

“I AM UNABLE TO REPAIR MY ARM WITH JUST ONE HAND.” The robot said, stopping halfway through the tent’s entrance. “WOULD YOU CARE TO ASSIST ME?”

Huh? Why did WX want that? And was it Webber’s imagination, or did he hear the faintest bit of apology behind the robot’s words?

Webber nodded, and WX entered all the way and sat down near the child, indicating where he was to hold the arm steady while he reconnected wires and welded it back on.

“I’m really sor-” Webber started, but was cut off by WX.

“I BELIEVE I UNDERESTIMATED YOU, SPIDER CHILD.” 

“Huh?”

“I DID NOT SEE MUCH USE IN YOU WHEN YOU FIRST ARRIVED. I ASSUMED YOU WERE JUST ANOTHER ADDITION TO THE NUMBERS. A EXTRA MOUTH TO FEED. BUT YOUR CONTROL OVER SPIDERS HAS ME THINKING OTHERWISE.”

“And that means?” Webber prompted.

“I MEAN YOU ARE SLIGHTLY MORE USEFUL THAN THE OTHER FLESHBAGS AROUND HERE. BUT ONLY SLIGHTLY.”

Webber wasn’t sure what to make of this, but it definitely calmed him down a bit. It assured him that WX wasn’t as mad at him as he originally thought.

 

“I SUPPOSED ONCE YOU ARE ALLOWED OUTSIDE THE CAMP AGAIN, I WILL NOT BE AS RELUCTANT TO TEACH YOU HOW TO HANDLE MORE DANGEROUS CREATURES. WOULD THAT BE SUFFICIENT?”

“Of course, Wex--WX.” Webber said with a nod. “I’ll definitely behave myself, too!”

“VERY WELL. NOW, PLEASE REMOVE YOUR HAND SO I MAY TEST THE ARM.”

And so, Webber spent the rest of the afternoon learning a bit about how to repair WX’s body, just in case another situation like this occurred. It definitely helped get his mind off the worst of his shame, but he still felt pretty bad for upsetting Wendy and Wickerbottom.

 

He would definitely apologize again when it was time to eat.


End file.
